


Nights With You

by Bbaegi



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Age Difference, Fluff, M/M, Slice of Life, abusive use of colors forgive me, yixing is basically a puppy here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-20
Updated: 2017-08-20
Packaged: 2018-12-17 18:41:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11857395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bbaegi/pseuds/Bbaegi
Summary: Yixing lived in a black and grey world until he met a colorful stranger who smiled at him, with his bright yellow shirt and the red cap he wore backwards.





	Nights With You

**Author's Note:**

> this story is totally based on MØ's Nights With You, which is where the title came from. I just immediately thought of Baekxing as soon as I heard the lyrics and couldn't help but write this even if it was supposed to be much shorter lmao If you haven't, go listen to the song, it's really nice!

_Black Light_ was way more crowded than usual tonight and that was the first thing Yixing had noticed as soon as he stepped into the bar, his gaze trailing around for longer than usual as he took in his surroundings.

 

Everyone had that one place they found comfort in, sometimes it was a tree to lean your back against in the middle of a quiet park, sometimes a bench right down the road of your house in a hometown you didn’t have the occasion to visit as much as you’d like to anymore, and sometimes, it was a bar you’d been frequenting for years now. In Yixing’s case, it was the latter and somehow, he couldn’t help but find it a little pitiful. People whose comfort place was a bar usually had a sad and boring life that they needed to forget for a few hours by drowning in alcohol. That was a bit pitiful, in his opinion, but a rather accurate description of his life and therefore, he didn’t waste a single second and simply walked further into the small bar.

 

It wasn’t a big place, just enough for people who looked for a quiet place to spend the night in, sharing drinks and conversations with their friends without anyone disturbing them. It wasn’t completely dead either, there was always laughter and drowned out voices, whispers or loud calls of people’s name as the patrons amused themselves as much as they could after a hard day of work. It was comfortable, with a bar counter at the end of the room, a few tables scattered around where groups of four people or less could sit and a few comfortable booths tucked into the other side. 

 

Yixing liked sitting in one of those booths to sip on a cold drink, it was comfortable for his back and a bit isolated from the rest of the bar, as if the owners had wanted to create more intimate bubbles for those that were in need. He was in need of that kind of privacy now but his night seemed to be going on the same path as the rest of his day, dwindling down the road unluckiness and misfortune since there was not a single spot available for him in those booths. 

 

He sighed softly, deciding that the next best option would be to sit on the bar counter since there were a few empty spots there and at least, he would be as close to drowning in alcohol as possible. He made his way towards the counter, grabbing the first high chair he found and plopping down on it, barely even having the strength to offer a smile to the bartender he was well-acquainted with.

 

"A Jack and Coke, please," he simply said and as if the woman was able to see through his exhaustion, she immediately got to work without inquiring about his day or making small conversation like she usually would. 

 

He simply waited for his much-needed drink and threw another look around. It was a Friday today and he supposed that was the reason why the bar was way more crowded than usual since this was his first time hanging out here on a Friday night. _Black Light_ wasn’t only his comfort place but also his best friend’s and Yixing always came here with him every Tuesday night as it was some sort of tradition for them. They were both working adults and had a busy life so it wasn’t that easy to find the time to hang out together without either of them cutting their meeting off early to rush somewhere else. Tuesday was the only day they could get together to complain about their life together, Jongdae always whining about how difficult and burdensome it was to work in his father’s company and Yixing always complaining about his stressful job as an accountant in an electronic firm.

 

They had seen each other last Tuesday and Yixing didn’t even like hanging out in bars but his day had been horrible and there was no way for him to be patient enough to wait until next Tuesday to get some alcohol in his system and try forgetting how much his boss had humiliated him today. They were having a busy month at the firm, too many clients and things to take care about and Yixing was as meticulous as he could be but after going three whole days with barely enough sleep for the numbers on his computer screen not to dance around whenever he looked at them, it was maybe a bit expected of him to make a mistake at some point. It usually never happened because he was a perfectionist and even if he didn’t like his job that much, he always made sure to do it properly but he had made a small, tiny mistake in his calculations today and his boss had basically jumped at his neck for it. 

 

He didn’t have a problem with being called out on his mistakes, that was the only way progress could be made and if he deserved it, then Yixing had no right to complain but his boss had been way too harsh on him. He had been working there for years, ever since he had finished college what felt like a century ago when it hadn’t even been a decade, he was only in his early thirties despite feeling like an old and withered man ready for retirement in a warm country with no one else but himself as company. However, despite working there for years, his boss still didn’t seem to have warmed up to him, always dumping too much work on him, never smiling at him, always reminding him of his daily tasks when Yixing already prepared a list of things to do the next day every night before leaving his office. He supposed it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to him that the old and unpleasant man would basically scream at him as if he were a child under the eyes of the whole office, telling him how incompetent and useless he was and stressing on each of his words by slapping Yixing’s chest with the report containing a tiny mistake.

 

It hadn’t been physically painful but the humiliation had followed him around for the rest of the day and he couldn’t forget the looks his colleagues had given him after that, most of them filled with pity but some people looking at him as if he had deserved it entirely. He supposed he still had to work on making friends with those few people.

 

He was pulled out of his thoughts when a small thud rose in front of him when the bartender pushed his drink to him and Yixing instantly wrapped his hands around the cold glass, bringing it to his lips for a big gulp. It managed to take the anger and the frustration off a little but Yixing knew he needed much more than a single glass to give himself the courage to go back to work tomorrow. If he had a hangover, it would at least give him something else but his boss’ hawk-like eyes to focus on.

 

"I didn't know this was a zombie bar," came a voice next to him and at first, Yixing didn’t pay any attention because everyone was talking around him and those words were probably destined for someone else.

 

However, when he took another sip of his drink, the ice clinking together in his glass, he felt the insistent feeling that someone was looking at him so he turned his head a bit to the right, gaze landing on an unfamiliar face. 

 

An unfamiliar face that belonged to someone who seemed way too young to be sitting next to him in a bar.

 

"Are you talking to me?" he asked even if the answer should be obvious by the way the stranger kept looking at him, a disturbingly youthful and amused smile on his lips. 

 

"Well, I don’t see anyone else looking like a zombie besides you here. Do you?" the other asked and if Yixing wasn’t mistaken, he seemed to be amused.

 

He couldn’t help but frown. He had been made fun of at the office the whole day and he wasn’t about to let a _teenager_ make fun of him at the bar, his only comfort place too.

 

"I don’t look like a zombie," was the only thing he said to defend himself before looking away and bringing his glass back up to his lips.

 

He didn’t want to be rude and outright tell the other to leave him alone but it was a bit upsetting to hear that he looked like a _zombie_ from a teenager who probably killed zombies everyday through the screen of his computer by playing weird games. Not that what he had said was particularly upsetting for the stranger, Yixing supposed. Rare were the occasions he had ever upset anyone and at that second, he wondered if that was the exact reason why everyone else didn’t hesitate to hurt him.

 

Either way, if that young boy was looking for entertainment, Yixing was far from being in the mood to fill that spot for him. He simply wanted to finish his drink quickly and ask for a refill.

 

However, the guy didn’t seem to have taken the hint.

 

"You have heavy dark circles under your eyes, a permanent frown on your face, and your skin looks pale even under the shitty yellow lights of this place," the other said casually, as if he wasn’t just listing out all of Yixing’s physical flaws. "In conclusion, you look like a zombie. Kinda lifeless."

 

"That’s a bit rude," Yixing frowned, mumbling those words out as he finally looked at the stranger again. "You can’t just go around and insult a stranger’s appearance."

 

That didn’t seem to even bother the other, however, and Yixing was at a loss when he only watched his smile widen a bit, as if those were exactly the words he had wanted to hear.

 

"Is that how you defend yourself against someone who’s presumably insulting you? I assure you you’re not scary at all and those simple words don't sound mean enough to make them stop. I thought zombies were the kind to eat people’s brain, not let everyone walk all over them."

 

That somehow felt more upsetting than the other’s earlier remarks about his appearance and Yixing couldn’t help but sigh a little bit. How could even a stranger see through him and easily say that Yixing was the kind of person who was just way too kind and let most people walk all over him. He heard those words from Jongdae enough to be used to it already but having a stranger slap you with those same words felt much more different. 

 

He gulped the rest of his drink down, leaving nothing but the small ice cubes in his glass, and called for the bartender to ask for a refill. Maybe he really should do something about his _problematic kindness,_ as Jongdae would call it. However, Yixing thought about that every Tuesday without ever actually doing anything about it and even he was tired of himself so he simply gave up on those thoughts and turned to the stranger to observe him more properly.

 

He really did look young, maybe just out of high school or a college student if Yixing was generous, but that might also only be the effect of the red cap he was wearing backwards. It made him look like one of those rebellious, hyper kids Yixing always saw in his hometown, and maybe that was also enhanced by the fact that he could see really pale blond strands of hair peeking at him under the cap. His eyes were droopy and he still had a light, almost excited smile on his lips, the combination oddly giving him a resemblance to the cute little puppy Yixing’s grandparents used to raise when he was still a small child who spent most of his time with them to make sure they had someone to take care of them and help them if needed. That little puppy never had a small mole right above his upper lip like the stranger did though and Yixing didn’t wasn’t even sure why he had noticed that detail but he quickly averted his gaze to the stranger’s hand.

 

His fingers were curled around a bottle of beer and somehow, that wasn’t surprising.

 

"And is that how you initiate a conversation with strangers? By being rude? That’s not the best way to make friends," he finally said after the few seconds spent observing the stranger whose gaze had never once strayed away from him.

 

"It got your attention, didn't it?" the other shrugged, still with that mischievous smile. Yixing wondered if it was stitched on his lips.

 

"That’s not the best way to make friends," he simply repeated, sincerely hoping that the stranger didn’t have the habit of going around bars and disturbing random strangers. He wondered if he did that because he was lonely. That thought kind of made him feel bad for not having been friendly with the stranger.

 

However, Yixing was tired of thinking about other people before himself and he really simply wanted to be alone with his alcohol just for tonight so he did his best not to feel too bad.

 

"Who said I wanted to be your friend?" The stranger raised an eyebrow and it looked a bit weird with his permanent smile but Yixing suddenly felt stupid.

 

Of course. Who would want to make friends with someone who looked like a zombie?

 

"Why are you talking to me then?" he grumbled, grabbing his newly-filled glass as soon as the bartender pushed it in front of him. He only had one drink and it didn’t have that much effect on him yet but maybe that was why he was being braver than usual.

 

The usual Yixing would have simply stayed silent after the other’s last words, upset and embarrassed that he had gotten ahead of himself. Yixing sometimes didn’t like himself.

 

"I just thought you looked like you needed some company," the other shrugged and this time he looked a bit more sincere.

 

Maybe he had really taken pity of Yixing. Maybe he really just wanted to be Yixing’s friend despite his earlier words. Maybe he was just a bit too playful. Kids usually were too playful, anyway. Maybe Yixing actually didn’t feel like being alone tonight. Maybe it would be nice to complain about his evil boss to this odd, but not exactly unkind stranger.

 

Those thoughts flew out of the window as soon as the stranger leaned a bit closer to him and trailed a finger up along the bare skin of Yixing’s forearm, the sleeves of the latter’s shirt rolled up and matching the disheveled look his loosened tie gave him. A shiver ran down his spine but mortification filled Yixing up almost instantly when he dragged his gaze up from the finger the stranger was still gently trailing over the length of his forearm and looked up at the other instead. He looked young. Too young.

 

He pulled his arm away from the other’s reach and brought his drink up to take another big gulp instead, not wanting the other to think he was outright rejecting him as that might be a little mean. When he looked back at the stranger, the amusement in his smile seemed to have increased.

 

"Are you even old enough to be here and keep me company?" Yixing asked after clearing his throat.

 

"I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t old enough, don’t you think?" the other snorted softly.

 

Yixing frowned. That wasn’t an actual reply, not one that made him comfortable enough to properly look at the other. He refused to acknowledge that someone who could possibly be a teenager had made him shiver with a single touch.

 

"How old are you?" he asked again, frowning.

 

The stranger _rolled his eyes._

 

Definitely a teenager, Yixing thought.

 

"Twenty three," was what the other replied, however, and Yixing raised a brow.

 

"Twenty three," he repeated, eyeing the other’s bright red cap, his blond hair, and his very casual outfit composed of a bright yellow shirt and blue, ripped jeans.

 

It was a rare sight to see someone dressed so colorfully, especially in this kind of bar. He was a bit adorable. Maybe a bit too adorable for Yixing who wasn’t sure whether he was lying or not.

 

"Yes, twenty three," the other said again with a small chuckle, one corner of his lips lifting up in an amused smirk afterwards. Adorable. A bit scarily so. "I’m old enough for you to stop looking at me as if you were committing a crime by just laying your eyes on me."

 

"That isn’t how I’m looking at you," Yixing spluttered, taken aback. He was too straightforward. Yixing had never met someone like that and he wasn’t really sure how to react.

 

But he was an adult and the other was probably freshly out of college so he shouldn’t be _almost_ intimidated by his somehow bright and loud presence next to him in a crowded, dim-lighted bar. He took another sip of his drink. He hadn’t planned to be a source of entertainment for someone so much younger than him when he had walked in. He had planned to be left alone with his misery and his favorite drink but the stranger didn’t seem to want to leave him alone. It probably would be easy to just ignore him or take his drink and find another spot far away from him but for some reason, Yixing couldn’t bring himself to do that. It would be rude. That was probably the only reason why he couldn’t do that.

 

"You don’t mind my age then," the other said and it was more of statement than a question but Yixing still found himself turning to him again and looking at him in confusion. He startled a bit when he found the stranger closer to him that he thought he was, only a few inches separating their face as the other trailed his gaze over his features, as if he was observing Yixing. "You do look like the kind of guy who likes them young."

 

"And you seem to be the kind of guy who has no notion of personal space," Yixing mumbled, surprising himself a bit. Must be the alcohol.

 

The stranger simply looked at him for a silent second before laughing and pulling away a little bit, not too much since his finger was once again trailing over Yixing’s arm, simply drawing curlicues on his wrist this time. He fought a shiver off. The guy was young. Not as young as he had feared but still too young.

 

"How old are you?"

 

The question surprised Yixing but he simply sighed.

 

"Why?"

 

"I just need to know your age to see if my theories are right." He shrugged nonchalantly and Yixing gave up on trying to stop him from touching him so intimately.

 

It was a simple touch, nothing overly affectionate or sexual and yet, Yixing could feel his heartbeat quickening just a little, his stomach a bit fuzzy. There was the alcohol, of course, but this odd stranger wasn’t only adorable and young, he was nothing but attractive, with his droopy eyes that were lined in black, now that Yixing paid close attention, and that warm smile that he sometimes traded for a mischievous and confident smirk. Why were all the young people so confident nowadays?

 

"What theories?" he finally asked, bringing his glass up to his lips with his free hand, leaving his other arm draped over the counter and trying his best not to focus on how soft and gentle the stranger’s fingers were against his skin.

 

"That you probably work as an accountant in some shitty firm," the other started, gaze fixated on Yixing who had stopped feeling fidgety because of it now that he was a little buzzed from alcohol, barely though, because he unfortunately had a good alcohol tolerance. He looked at the other in surprise instead, his glass resting against his lower lip, frozen just like he was. "You probably had a shitty day too, your boss probably sucks and was an asshole to you today. You also didn’t get enough sleep last night if I’m generous or in a few days if I wanted to stretch that theory out. You came here to be alone and drown your sorrows and frustrations in alcohol but you also kinda feel lonely. You look really young, you’d look even younger after a full night’s rest but you’re probably in your thirties. Only old people order that drink."

 

"That’s not true, this is a very popular drink," Yixing immediately protested because that was the only thing he could say without letting his surprise apparent.

 

Was he really that easy to read?

 

"Boring," Baekhyun simply said, scrunching his nose a little as he glanced at the glass Yixing had finally put down on the counter. 

 

"You’re drinking _beer_ ," he retorted.

 

"Was I right?" the odd stranger asked, ignoring him. 

 

"I’m thirty two," was the only thing Yixing mumbled because maybe it was a bit too difficult to admit that everything else had been correct too.

 

"So you do like them young," the other smiled teasingly again. Yixing didn’t reply, looking away and frowning a little until he felt a warm breath tickling his ear and an alluring voice flowing into his mind. "That could mean I’m the perfect company you need."

 

Yixing turned to look at him, hesitant.

 

"How did you know all that?" he asked softly, actually wanting to know if he was that easy to read. It felt a bit painful, knowing that misery could be read on his face.

 

"I’ve met enough bored and lonely accountants to recognize them anywhere," was the other’s answer.

 

That somehow felt a bit more painful. That meant he was ordinary. A copy of dozens of men who could be found in the streets, nothing special, nothing interesting, and nothing he liked. He supposed that it shouldn’t be surprising, that was the perfect way to describe his life. Ordinary. Boring. Unchanging. He got out of bed at the same hour every day, he ate breakfast at the same hour, showered, left his house, and stepped into the office at the same hour. It was a monotonous life and Yixing felt more trapped than ever at this exact moment.

 

"So, do I get a reward for getting it all right?" he heard next to him and when he looked at the stranger again, something in his stomach churned.

 

He was sitting at a bar, holding a completely random conversation with a completely random stranger who was randomly trying to hit on him. Yixing might be a bit too kind but he wasn’t stupid, he could see through the other’s intentions. He was a stranger. So young. Bright. So colorful and bright and noisy and happy and full of life and so painfully different from how Yixing felt, even at first right. He was attractive, he was maybe the most attractive person Yixing had met in a long time and it was almost scary how he found the other’s smile beautiful and how much Yixing wanted to keep this conversation going. It was interesting, the way the other spoke and kept his attention to himself even if Yixing had wanted to be alone at first. It felt different. The stranger felt different.

 

This conversation made him feel a little bit alive. He hadn’t felt alive in a long time.

 

It was scary.

 

"I have a boyfriend," he suddenly blurted out before even realizing what he had done. Regret instantly overwhelmed him but he took a grip of himself. This was the right thing to do. Probably. "Yeah, I have a boyfriend," he repeated, nodding to himself and avoiding the other’s gaze while hoping his lie wasn’t too obvious.

 

Yixing hadn’t had a boyfriend for three whole years, he hadn’t had _anything_ for three whole years and he was used to it. It was difficult and a bit scary for him to break out of his habits. Maybe that was why he hadn’t quit his job after five full years of hell there, a little voice whispered in his head.

 

"You have a boyfriend," Baekhyun repeated, pulling away from him and giving him a look Yixing couldn’t really read. He hoped it wasn’t suspicion. It didn’t seem to be.

 

"Yeah, I have a boyfriend. He always calls me and messages me… and all that," he trailed off, clearing his throat and hoping that he hadn’t ruined things with his tendency to give too many details when he was lying.

 

It was obviously a lie. The last boyfriend Yixing had had stopped calling him almost a whole month before their break up. That was three years ago. He wasn’t even sure he still knew how to be a boyfriend. Not that it mattered right now because he didn’t need a boyfriend, he needed to be _alone._

 

Or at least he wanted to be, because it had almost become a comfort for him.

 

"I see," the stranger hummed before his lips curled into the same light smile he always had. "Well, then. You can still reward me by being my friend for tonight."

 

"What’s the use of being friends if we’re not gonna see each other ever again after tonight?" Yixing mumbled softly. 

 

He was insisting and the more he insisted, the more difficult it was for Yixing to continue telling himself that he wanted to be alone tonight.

 

"All the more reason to make our one night together unforgettable, don’t you think so?" the other chuckled and Yixing found himself unable to say anything for a second.

 

He was so bright, so energetic and Yixing could literally feel the waves of joy that emanated from the stranger wrap all around him in an attempt to convince him to follow whatever they wanted to do. He wasn’t sure whether those waves felt restraining or energizing.

 

"A night spent in a bar can rarely become unforgettable, especially when alcohol is involved," Yixing said, continuously glancing at the stranger but never actually looking at him fully.

 

This was so different from what he was used to. This was out of his comfort zone. Yixing hated breaking his habits. He never had the habit of letting strangers talk him into spending the night with them and making it unforgettable, whatever that meant.

 

And yet, when the younger smiled at him, bright as the sun and captivating as the stars, Yixing knew that he was on the verge of jumping out of a helicopter miles above the ground and letting the sky do whatever it wanted to with him.

 

"Oh, but we’re not going to spend the night here. Come on," the other said, standing up from his stool and downing his whole bottle of beer so suddenly, Yixing would’ve been worried for him had he not been surprised by his words.

 

"What?" he stupidly said, wide eyes observing the other.

 

"We’re leaving," he replied as if it should’ve been obvious.

 

"What? You expect me to just follow a random stranger around for the whole night?" he asked and was almost proud of himself for managing to do it.

 

However, the other simply sighed and Yixing was taken by worry at the prospect of upsetting him. That didn’t seem to be the case though as his smile was quickly back on his lips, brighter than before.

 

"Byun Baekhyun," he said, only elaborating when Yixing gave him a blank look. "That’s my name. I’m not a stranger anymore since you know my name."

 

"Yixing," he found himself replying, unconsciously, and he had already broken at least three of his own boundaries and habits but somehow, the way _Baekhyun_ grinned at him made him forget he even had such thing as a comfort zone to begin with.

 

"Alright, Mr. No-Last-Name Yixing, let’s go and turn you from a zombie to a man full of life," were the words accompanying Baekhyun’s dashing but teasing smile before it was gone from sight when he turned around and headed towards the exit without another word, as if he knew Yixing would follow him.

 

He watched the other’s back retreating towards the exit of the bar, observing almost in disbelief when Baekhyun pulled the door open but merely stopped and glanced at him over his shoulder for a second before stepping out. Somehow, he looked even brighter from afar, so colorful, like a misplaced splash of yellow in a painting depicting a black and grey world. Misplaced but for some reason, fitting perfectly.

 

Yixing felt something fuzzy trailing across his body, jumping from the pit of his stomach to his chest as he was stuck, looking at the now closed door for a few seconds and almost still seeing the intriguing stranger with his bright smile, odd words, and yellow shirt even if he was outside already, probably waiting for Yixing. He bit his lower lip in hesitation. Turning from a zombie to a man full of life sounded nice. He took a deep breath.

 

Yellow. It was a bright and joyful color. It was happiness. He had never liked yellow. Why? No particular reason. It just wasn’t a color easily worn, it wasn’t a color that fit easily amongst other things. No one really liked yellow. He had no real reason not to like yellow and as soon as he noticed that, Yixing downed the last few drops of his drink, paid for it in a rush, and immediately headed out of the bar.

 

Yellow was easy to spot when he got out of the bar, just a few feet away from him, waiting to be noticed and followed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It had been less than an hour since a random stranger whose name he now knew to be Baekhyun had initiated a conversation with him at the bar Yixing had gone to with the intent of drowning his problems - and maybe himself as well - in alcohol and yet, he had already broken way too many of his own rules, crossing his boundaries, and completely destroying the little bubble that was his comfort zone.

 

Only yesterday, if you had told him that one night, he would let a really young and attractive stranger completely take control of him and make him follow him around the streets without any kid of hesitation, Yixing would’ve laughed at you. However, it had been less than an hour and Baekhyun had used half of it to hit on Yixing with his odd flirting tactics, spending the remaining time settled on the passenger’s seat of Yixing’s car, giving him directions to an unknown destination while somehow managing to make Yixing talk more than he had thought he would. 

 

It had been so easy to simply pour everything out to Baekhyun, his bright yellow shirt constantly visible in the corner of Yixing’s sightline even if if he kept his eyes on the road while driving. It had been oddly easy to let the words escape him as he told a complete stranger everything about how he had never really wanted to be an accountant but he had needed a stable job to be able to regularly send money to his grandparents who had no one but him to take care of them. It had been so refreshing to tell him whatever he had in mind about his cruel boss who had no consideration towards his employees, and especially not towards Yixing who probably worked harder than anyone else in that company. It had been so freeing to tell Baekhyun that he actually really did feel like a zombie traveling from work to home every single day, doing the same things over and over again and letting numbers and unhappiness eat his brain away to leave him basically lifeless.

 

Baekhyun had listened to him through it all, not bothering to hide what he thought about the asshole that was his boss, and certainly not telling him that he was surprised to hear Yixing say such things about his life. He had asked so many questions after that, wondering about Yixing’s favorite color, his favorite food, the things that annoyed him the most, and his ideal type. Yixing had laughed at that last question because it felt so new for someone to be so open about their interest towards him and it was still a bit scary but it felt nice to be out of his comfort zone and just letting himself go along with the flow. 

 

However, he had soon remembered that he had told Baekhyun he had a boyfriend because this was all still a little bit scary and he had insisted not to reply to that question because it didn’t matter. Baekhyun had not yielded easily, however, and Yixing soon found himself randomly describing the contrary of what his last boyfriend had been.

 

Fortunately, they soon seemed to reach their destination since Baekhyun had put an end to his endless streak of questions and had simply asked Yixing to park the car wherever he could.

 

"Where are we even?" he asked after turning the engine off, throwing a look around but not really recognizing his surroundings because not only was it night but they had also driven for a rather long time which could only mean that they were far from the places Yixing was used to hanging out in.

 

"It’s kind of a park," Baekhyun simply said before pushing the car door open. "C’mon, let’s go."

 

And Yixing once again surprised himself by silently doing as told even if they were in a pretty remote place that could probably be used perfectly if you were a serial killer pulling your victims in with bright smiles and colorful clothes.

 

It wasn’t that cold because it was August, well into summer, bit it was also nighttime and there still was a small breeze blowing around that drew a shiver down Yixing’s spine. He didn’t mind though because as soon as he got out of the car, he was hit by a waft of air that somehow felt cleaner than he was used to and refreshing. It obviously couldn’t be completely clear, they were in a big city after all, but it was better than usual and a simple look around was enough to know that it was because there was a lot of trees around them. There was nothing but trees actually, a small hill standing in front of them, bare and probably bright green under daylight. 

 

It was rather dark, with nothing but the moon to light up the path for him but he got used to it after a while and it wasn’t difficult to find Baekhyun who never strayed too far from him anyway. His shirt didn’t exactly look yellow under this kind of lighting but he still somehow looked bright and his cap was crooked on his head, still worn backwards like a mischievous child.

 

"I didn’t know this kind of place existed here," he said, voice sounding a bit too loud to his own ears as they were surrounded by nothing but night sounds, the gentle whistling of the light wind and the distant sound of crickets forming an almost peaceful and relaxing melody.

 

"You just have to look for the great things if you wanna find them," Baekhyun shrugged, something that seemed to be a habit of his.

 

Yixing wasn’t sure why he noticed that, just like he wasn’t sure why he noticed that Baekhyun’s face almost looked as if it was glistening under the moon, as if his skin was nothing but an unblemished mirror reflecting moonlight’s gentle dance in the air surrounding them. There was almost no stars in the sky, the downside of living in a big city, but for a split second, Yixing couldn’t help but think that he really just had to look into Baekhyun’s eyes if he wanted to see tiny diamonds sparkling in an ocean of darkness.

 

He wasn’t used to thinking that way about anyone. He looked away and around him instead, clearing his throat quietly.

 

"It’s nice," he simply said, feeling a bit more comfortable around Baekhyun now that they had gone through a journey of almost half an hour in a car that hadn’t been silent even for a single minute.

 

"It is, I really like to come here when I just need a break from everything else. It’s usually empty at night but there are always a few families coming here for a picnic during the day," Baekhyun informed him before motioning him to follow as he started walking.

 

Yixing usually didn’t like taking this kind of orders from anyone outside of work since he followed enough rules and demands in the office and he needed to at least have half a grasp on his own life outside of it but somehow, he didn’t mind silently following Baekhyun. The latter seemed to have the habit of motioning people to follow him or outright telling them to do so, as if he always had an adventure to take them into or something impressive to show. 

 

It was odd and maybe a bit too careless but Yixing didn’t mind following the other. He supposed he could allow himself to do it now too if he had already followed someone who was supposed to be a stranger out of a bar and then right into an almost isolated spot.

 

It turned out that Baekhyun wasn’t actually planning to murder him and bury him between the sometimes tiny, sometimes bigger hills they walked up. As they walked a bit, he simply babbled about how nice it was to be here even during the day and how funny it was to simply roll down those small hills when they were heavily covered in snow in Winter and Yixing couldn’t suppress a small laugh at that. It wasn’t difficult to imagine Baekhyun in a bright yellow snowsuit rolling down the hills and laughing out loud like a toddler when he was supposed to be a grown man. The image alone brought an odd kind of warmth into Yixing’s chest and he couldn’t help but think that it would be adorable. 

 

He bit his tongue harshly when he caught himself associating the word _adorable_ to Baekhyun for the umpteenth time tonight. He never found anyone adorable. He had stopped finding people adorable years ago, after his break up with a boyfriend who had never cared enough despite the years they had spent together.

 

It was easy to forget all about that as he listened to Baekhyun talk and talk and talk without ever feeling the need to tell him to stop though. He wasn’t exactly repeating himself as he spoke for the few minutes they spent walking anyway, he just had a lot of different but equally interesting stories to tell and Yixing listened to all of them until they stopped at the top of a slightly bigger hill. He was panting a bit by that time but it didn’t really matter because it made Baekhyun laugh a bit, rudely for sure, but prettily.

 

He had a pretty laugh and a beautiful smile and a handsome face and Yixing had to stop noticing all those things.

 

Fortunately, Baekhyun himself was a good enough distraction when he suddenly looked at Yixing for a silent second only to plop down on the ground and immediately laying on his back, stretching his arms over his head while letting out a soft groan. Yixing was left to blink in surprise, looking at the other while still standing on his two feet.

 

"What are you doing?" he asked, rather stupidly.

 

"Laying down and resting, obviously. Did age already start messing with your sight, hyung?" Baekhyun replied teasingly and Yixing frowned.

 

"No, silly. I meant why are you laying down on the grass, it’s dirty and you might catch a cold," he replied, actually worried about the other. He would feel bad if he were to get sick because he simply wanted to show Yixing around and make him feel more alive, whatever that even meant.

 

"Don’t be such an adult, I’ll be fine," the other snorted before suddenly getting a hold of the hem of Yixing’s pants and tugging, once again silently asking him to follow whatever he was doing.

 

By that point, Yixing supposed he had already given up on everything anyway so he simply plopped down next to the other, albeit a little more slowly and carefully. He didn’t want to stain his slacks and he wasn’t even sure the grass was alright to sit on or not since there could be mud, he supposed. However, one look halfway between amused and exasperated from Baekhyun was enough to get him to stop fussing.

 

"I _am_ an adult," he mumbled as he carefully moved to properly lay down, shivering a bit as he could feel the cold grass through his thin layer of clothes. "You’re also supposed to be one, just for the record."

 

"You’re here to be the adult for me, aren’t you? That means I don’t have to act all responsible and uptight," the other laughed softly, turning his head to look at him.

 

Yixing was momentarily unable to say anything at that because it almost felt as if despite having dragged Yixing around since their very first conversation, Baekhyun was leaving some of himself into Yixing’s hands as well. It was a nice thought. An odd one, but still rather nice and Yixing wondered if Baekhyun really was the kind of person who constantly needed someone to be the adult for him. Not even in any weird sense, he just actually looked like a mischievous child and judging by the way he had gotten into a complete stranger’s car, he didn’t seem to have any sense of self-preservation or the ability to make sane decisions.

 

That thought was confirmed by the way he was now shaking his head in an attempt to prevent his cap from digging into the back of his neck. Yixing let out a soft, muffled laugh and simply grabbed the cap to pull it off and away from Baekhyun’s head, the latter lifting his head a bit to help before grinning at Yixing with all his teeth once the cap was resting on his chest, harmless.

 

"See? That’s what I meant," he simply said but Yixing couldn’t pay proper attention to his words when the only thing he could see was the way Baekhyun’s eyes crinkled a little bit at the corners when he smiled widely. 

 

His eyes actually narrowed into tiny slits when he smiled, half moons that seemed to have absorbed all the stars around them to steal their sparkle and intensify it. Had there been any actual stars in the sky, Yixing would’ve thought that Baekhyun’s eyes were merely reflecting them, it could make sense for someone like Yixing who looked for too many excuses since they were laying down and facing the sky. However, it wasn’t the case, it was as if Baekhyun had his own personal stars in his eyes and somehow, his eyes were probably brown and looked almost black under the night sky but his gaze wasn’t really dark. It was almost as if Yixing could see splashes of color in the other’s eyes, a drop of yellow happiness, a tint of blue serenity, and maybe hints of purple, Yixing’s favorite color. 

 

It was as if he held stars sparkling in all the colors of a rainbow in his eyes and yet, even that didn’t feel enough for Yixing to describe how captivating it was to look into this intriguing stranger’s eyes.

 

"Why are we here?" Yixing asked after noticing that he had zoned out for more than a few seconds, gaze lost on Baekhyun who didn’t seem to mind being observed so insistently for so long.

 

"Because you needed an actually quiet place without any stranger possibly disturbing you," Baekhyun said and Yixing gave him a look but the latter ignored it, smiling amusedly as he looked up at the sky, arms crossed under his head to support it. "And because this is the perfect place for you let go of some dead weights and take the first step towards coming back to life."

 

"It’s a bit upsetting of you to constantly talk about me as if I was an actual zombie, you know," he mumbled, not actually upset but just a tad amused by the whole situation.

 

He had let a stranger, who had initiated their conversation by calling him a zombie, bring him into a remote place. Jongdae wouldn’t believe him if he were to tell him. Not that he would tell him because he had driven after drinking a little bit and his best friend would skin him alive for that even if Yixing had been sober enough to do it. He hadn’t really had the choice anyway, it was either that or let Baekhyun drive his car and Yixing valued it too much for that.

 

"You’re a handsome zombie, I’ll give you that at least," Baekhyun said so casually and suddenly that Yixing almost choked on his own breath.

 

The little amount of alcohol in his blood had faded away along with the little strike of courage he had earned from it and it was much more difficult to act unaffected by Baekhyun’s sudden flirty remarks.

 

"What dead weights?" he asked instead, choosing to ignore the other’s last words.

 

"Your frustrations and things that anger you," Baekhyun replied, turning his head to look at him and catching his gaze. "This is the perfect place to just get everything out by screaming your lungs out."

 

"You want me to just scream like a madman?" he asked incredulously, chuckling in surprise.

 

"Yes," the other grinned. "That’s the only way for you to actually relieve yourself and let go of the frustration you seem to be so focused on. Go on, just scream whatever you’d like to scream at your boss whenever he’s being an asshole."

 

"But I already told you everything in the car," he protested.

 

"It’s not the same as screaming things at the sky."

 

"I don’t feel comfortable with screaming personal things and risk people hearing it."

 

"There’s no one but the stars and me here," Baekhyun retorted and he seemed to be very patient because he was still looking at Yixing expectantly. Or maybe he was just really stubborn.

 

"There are no stars in the sky," Yixing mumbled and he was aware that he was acting like a bratty child but he couldn’t help it when Baekhyun was asking him to do something completely out of his comfort zone.

 

He had always been the kind to bottle everything up and never complain unless it was getting really necessary but here was Baekhyun, a complete stranger, asking him to scream his frustrations at the sky.

 

"There are always stars if you know where to look, hyung," Baekhyun chuckled softly, still looking at Yixing as if he knew he was going to do it no matter how much he resisted at first. "Come on, do it."

 

And it was so easy for Yixing to tell himself that he was only doing it because Baekhyun insisted and not because he felt like he was about to explode, trapped in his own body and in a life he had never really wanted. It was easy to part his lips after that but it was difficult to find the right words to scream because there were so many things he was worried, frustrated, or upset about and he didn’t even know where to start.

 

Fortunately, Baekhyun seemed to have sensed his discomfort and he heard a soft chuckle before it was droned out by a loud scream.

 

"My landlord keeps increasing my rent because he hates my guts, fuck you, old man!" Baekhyun screamed loudly, eyes almost fully closed as he did so before he turned to Yixing and looked at him again, as if nothing had just happened. "See, it's really easy."

 

It was difficult for Yixing to keep his laughter from bubbling out and he bit his lower lip because this whole situation was ridiculous and it only worsened when Baekhyun parted his lips again, somehow screaming even louder than before.

 

"Mom, I know I dropped out of college without your consent but you were the one who told me to always do what made me happy when I was a child! What the hell changed now?"

 

His voice flowed freely in the open space surrounding them and it hurt Yixing’s ears a little but for some reason, it made it incredibly easier to finally pour out whatever had been weighing down on his chest for a long while now.

 

"My boss is an asshole!" he finally screamed, throat hurting a little bit afterwards even if his voice was wobbly and hesitating as he did so. He glanced at Baekhyun, seeing the smile on his lips for a second before looking up at the dark sky again, taking a deep breath it, and letting the thrill that was slowly seeping into him guide his next words out of his mouth. "He only hates me because I’ve caught him adjusting his wig once and he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s bald!"

 

His words were immediately followed by Baekhyun’s laughter and that joyful melody wrapped all around Yixing’s body, like a comforting blanket or maybe wafts of smoke that he inhaled without knowing that it would be contagious. That would be the only way to explain why Yixing was laughing harder with a stranger than he had ever laughed in his whole life.

 

They took turns screaming after that, Baekhyun complaining about stupid things like how his socks always seemed to get lost whenever he was doing laundry only to scream about how all his friends were already college graduates with amazing jobs and a loving partner they were about to marry while he was still struggling with everything. Yixing never asked anything, never questioning him the same way Baekhyun didn’t question him when he screamed that his mother was growing more heartless with each passing year, forgetting all about her parents the same way she had forgotten about Yixing for most of the childhood he had spent living with his grandparents. 

 

Oddly, Baekhyun had been right. The more he screamed at the dark, endless sky, the lighter his chest felt and the easier it was to actually spot a few star here and there, no matter how weakly they shined because of the city lights. Maybe it was because there was constant laughter between everything they screamed together or maybe it was because Yixing had actually needed to scream his frustrations out but by the end of it, he felt much lighter than he had felt in years.

 

He was also a bit breathless from laughing too much and screaming too loudly but he also wondered for a split second if he was short of breath only because halfway through it, Baekhyun had squirmed close enough to him to rest his head on Yixing’s shoulder without the latter being able to deny him anything to push him away. It felt nice. It didn’t feel like an added weight on top of his frail, tired body but on the contrary, like a gentle colorful cloud seeping under him and pulling him away from a colorless world and up into a bright sky where it was much easier to breathe instead.

 

After an hour more spent there, with Baekhyun gradually wrapping himself all around Yixing with the excuse of being cold, the latter couldn’t help but think that once again, Baekhyun had been right. There were always stars in the sky if you knew where to look at but Yixing had simply stopped trying to locate them a long time ago.

 

It was a bit odd how a complete stranger was the one to teach him where to look again but somehow, Baekhyun felt closer to him than anyone else had ever been and maybe it didn’t matter as long as he could spot the stars with him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Are you sure this is where you want to eat?" Yixing asked about an hour later when they were back downtown and stood in front of a fast food restaurant that he eyed skeptically.

 

"Yes, we’re hungry," was Baekhyun’s reply as he simply grabbed Yixing’s wrist and dragged him inside.

 

"No, you’re hungry and you decided that I should also be hungry," Yixing mumbled but didn’t do anything to prevent Baekhyun from once again dragging him around.

 

They had left the small hill they’d been lying down on while screaming close to an hour ago now and they had simply gone for a drive for a while, the car silent as if Baekhyun had waited for Yixing to say something, maybe giving him the occasion to drop him off and forget all about this if he wanted to. Baekhyun might be bit stubborn and over-eager concerning his little adventures but he obviously hadn’t wanted to be overbearing either, that was at least what Yixing had associated to the silence that had gone on for a few minutes as he aimlessly drove around.

 

Baekhyun had perked up again as soon as Yixing had asked him what was the next step in their path to making him feel alive again and here they were now, advancing into a fast food restaurant Yixing hadn’t frequented since his teenage years.

 

It was way past midnight now and it wasn’t too crowded in the restaurant, there was just a noisy group of four friends at one corner and a lone woman eating her food alone at the back of the room. He supposed that was a good thing, it wasn’t too loud but it wasn’t too silent either. Moreover, Yixing was actually hungry, he just wasn’t sure he wanted to eat greasy and unhealthy food in the middle of the night when they could’ve gotten something healthier to eat. He had even offered to pay for it but Baekhyun had almost looked offended, telling him that not only he had his own money to pay for their food but that the second step to becoming alive again was to stop being so uptight and caring about everything he ate. Eating healthy was boring, according to Baekhyun, and Yixing had protested but yet again, he was here, settling at a table for two while Baekhyun was off ordering for the both of them because he didn’t trust Yixing to command anything unhealthy.

 

Yixing simply waited for him, retrieving his phone out of his jacket’s pocket. He had given it to Baekhyun back when they had been screaming at the sky since the other had been a bit cold with a mere shirt on and he hadn’t had the occasion to check the device since they had left the bar but as the screen lighted up now, he almost regretted doing it. He had a message from his boss giving him even more work to do for Monday morning and Yixing sighed loudly before putting his phone on the table, face down.

 

He didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t want let the black and grey tones of his office catching up to him again so he simply looked up, gaze immediately finding the bright yellow of Baekhyun’s shirt as he was leaning over the counter to give their orders to a rather sleepy-looking employee. He was bright, impossible to miss against the brown tones of the counter and oddly fitting between the yellow and red theme of the restaurant. He was bright, almost as if his yellow shirt had caught every single ounce of sunlight during the day to shine brighter than ever at night. Or maybe it wasn’t the shirt that made him shine so brightly but something else. Something inside of him maybe, like the joy of life that Yixing hadn’t felt in so long until now, maybe.

 

It wasn’t a habit of his to be out in this part of the city, with the popular shops and the restaurants lining the youthful streets of a youthful district. It was even more out of the usual for him to be in a fast food restaurant in the middle of the night and yet, Yixing couldn’t lie to himself and deny the fact that he was enjoying this night much more than the past few hundreds of nights he had spent working, sleeping, or simply locked up in his house. 

 

He wasn’t sure how or why but Baekhyun had really managed to make him a bit more alive than usual and somehow, it felt so nice to break out of his habits and just follow a stranger around while letting himself be dragged to spontaneous adventures and unfamiliar places. Maybe it wasn’t the unfamiliar places that made him feel alive though, maybe a bit of the sunlight trapped in Baekhyun’s yellow shirt had rubbed off on him when he had been laying so close to him earlier, on the grass.

 

Soon enough, Baekhyun turned around and Yixing quickly scrambled to look away, hoping that he hadn’t been caught staring at the other. It didn’t seem to be the case, however, and Baekhyun soon made his way to their table with a tray full of food in his hands. He put it down, grinning at Yixing who glanced at the content before looking at the younger in mortification.

 

"That’s all so greasy!" he couldn’t help but say as Baekhyun sat down across him.

 

His words seemed to amuse him rather than upset him, judging but the way he laughed softly at Yixing.

 

"Greasy means delicious, old man," he chirped while taking a huge cup, sticking a straw in it through the lid, and then pushing it in front of Yixing.

 

"That’s coke," Yixing noted after taking a sip of it, letting Baekhyun put whatever food was meant for him in front of him.

 

"Yep," the other nodded, bright red cap back on top of his head again, this time worn sideways. It was adorable. This was probably the tenth time Yixing had noticed that tonight. He focused back on the wrapped up burger Baekhyun put in front of him. "I figured you liked coke since you ordered a Jack and Coke at the bar," he said and Yixing wasn’t sure whether there was a bit of a teasing edge in those words or not. He had _that_ smile on so there probably was.

 

"What’s all this?" he then asked, eyeing all the greasy food once Baekhyun was done moving around and had started sipping on his own drink instead.

 

"I got two different burgers for you because I didn’t know what you liked, along with chicken nuggets, a few different sauces, fries, and a muffin as desert. For me, I got a burger and a wrap, fries, nuggets too, and the same muffin as you. We’re gonna eat good," he said once he was done listing everything off under Yixing’s wide eyes.

 

"I’m not sure I can finish eating all of that," he mumbled softly before frowning. "And are you even going to be able to finish all your food yourself?"

 

"Don’t underestimate me," Baekhyun merely said while shoving a whole nugget into his mouth.

 

Yixing simply laughed, noting in the back of his mind that he had laughed in the span of a few hours probably as much as he had laughed for the past three months.

 

They both focused on their food for a few silent seconds and Yixing wasn’t used to eating this kind of meal but he was hungry and after the first few bites, he actually noticed that he had missed eating greasy food. It was much more delicious than he remembered it to be and even if Baekhyun eyed him teasingly when he finished his first burger, Yixing simply shrugged and continued eating his nuggets and fries to leave his second burger last, if he’d still have room to eat it.

 

"So, how are you feeling?" Baekhyun asked after a while, mouth still full of food even as he spoke. Yixing did his best not to scrunch his nose at that because he had a feeling Baekhyun wouldn’t change his eating habits just because of him anyway.

 

"Great," he simply said, sighing a bit but not with exhaustion or anything of that sort. On the contrary, he felt more alive and energized than he had in weeks, maybe months. "The whole screaming thing actually worked, I think. I feel a bit lighter."

 

"Told you it would work," Baekhyun grinned, shoving a handful of fries into his mouth and spilling a bit of ketchup along the way. Yixing simply shook his head with a light chuckle and handed him a few napkins.

 

"I didn’t expect it to work, I thought you brought me there because were planning to kill me by rolling me down those hills or something," he laughed softly, not afraid to admit that now. There was no awkwardness left between them, Baekhyun wasn’t a stranger anymore.

 

"Why would you think that after I told you I was going to make you feel alive again?" Baekhyun said, laughter bubbling out of his mouth and tinkling around gently, like small bells dancing in the wind’s embrace and singing in joy.

 

How was it possible for someone to look like the embodiment of a feeling? Yixing didn’t know but the one thing he was sure about was that Baekhyun was the closest person to the feeling the color yellow emanated. Bright and happy and joyful and full of life. Maybe Baekhyun was a little bit like paint, yellow seemed to stain Yixing’s fingertips and cling to his skin, drawing a smile out of him every time he so much as glanced at it.

 

He wondered if Baekhyun had that effect on everyone he met.

 

"Well, I didn’t think that would be possible actually but you managed to do it," he smiled, momentarily gaining all of Baekhyun’s attention to himself as the other simply looked at him for a second as he spoke. Yixing hoped he could see all the sincerity he felt in his smile because he had never really been good with words. "Thank you for that. Really."

 

Baekhyun stayed silent for a few seconds after that and they spent those simply looking at each other. For the first time in the whole night, Yixing didn’t feel the urge to turn his gaze away even if Baekhyun’s gaze was sharper and softer than ever all at the same time. 

 

Then, Baekhyun simply shrugged and brought the straw of his cup up to his lips to take a sip.

 

"You can thank me by giving me your fries if you’re not eating them."

 

Once again, the only thing Yixing could do was laugh at his words while giving the other his fries as easily as he had given him the reigns over his life for tonight.

 

"You said you dropped out of college earlier," Yixing carefully said after a while, when he had gathered enough courage to do so. Baekhyun hadn’t talked about it even if Yixing had answered to all his questions about his life and he wasn’t sure the other wanted to breach this subject but he couldn’t win over his curiosity.

 

"I did," Baekhyun simply replied as he grabbed his wrap sandwich and took a bite.

 

He didn’t seem particularly bothered by the subject so Yixing asked another question.

 

"Why?"

 

The other simply shrugged, humming softly as if Yixing had asked him a difficult question to answer.

 

"I just didn’t really like what I was studying," he finally said after a while and it was almost surprising, the way he was willing to talk about it so casually. Maybe that meant he had fully accepted whatever the issue had been and had moved on already. That did seem like something Baekhyun would do. "I actually didn’t know what I wanted to do after graduating from high school so I just went along with whatever my mom suggested me to do. It took me three whole years to realize I didn’t like what I was doing and that if I didn’t stop now, I’d hate the rest of my life and regret it until the day I die."

 

"Your mom wasn’t happy with that," Yixing stated more than asked since that was exactly what Baekhyun had screamed at the stars earlier. 

 

"Nope, she wasn’t," the other shrugged and if he had been upset about it earlier, there was no sign of it now. It was a bit worrisome , Yixing knew how bad it felt to bottle things and hide negative emotions inside. "She was really upset because I just wasted three years of my life and had no real plan after dropping out. She wanted me to have a stable job with at least a decent pay but I kinda blew that chance up and she’s still not over it."

 

"What, did she kick you out of her house or something?" he asked, now actually worried. Baekhyun had talked about trouble with his landlord and suddenly, he wondered if the other was actually in trouble and on the verge of living in the streets or something just as bad.

 

"Of course not," Baekhyun laughed softly, shaking his head. "I already moved out of her house when I started college so I’ve been living alone for a while now. She just didn’t contact me for a few months but the damage wasn’t as bad as you seem to imagine in that stressed out little head of yours," the other said teasingly, obviously amused by Yixing’s tendency to imagine the worst case scenarios. The latter stayed quiet, a bit embarrassed. "We’re in contact now even if it took her a few months to come in terms with everything. It’s not the same as it used to be though, we fought a lot and we still do sometimes but it is what it is."

 

"I hope you’ll be able to patch things up one day," was the only thing Yixing found himself able to say as he didn’t want the other to think he was pitying or patronizing him. Just like Baekhyun said,  things were the way they were and sometimes, you couldn’t do anything about it.

 

"Well, we’ll see one day, I guess," Baekhyun shrugged before leaning forward to grab the little box of nuggets in front of Yixing. 

 

He had eaten his two burgers and drank all his coke but he didn’t have room for anything more so he was glad that Baekhyun had taken his fries and was doing the same for his nuggets. It was a wonder, how much he seemed to be able to eat.

 

"What were you studying?" he asked, curious.

 

"Accounting," Baekhyun said, with an amused smile as Yixing blinked in surprise. "Funny coincidence, right?"

 

"Right," Yixing said, finally able to let out a soft chuckle.

 

Somehow, he didn’t feel bad about this almost ironic situation. Baekhyun had done what Yixing sometimes wished he had done and even if he was struggling, it was obvious that the younger was much happier than Yixing was. He didn’t feel upset or jealous about it, on the contrary, he was really happy for the other. Maybe along with his joy, he could let a bit of Baekhyun’s courage stain his fingers and seep into his skin.

 

"What about you? Got trouble with your family too?"

 

"A little," Yixing sighed, leaning back against his chair and simply watching Baekhyun wolf down the rest of the food. He grabbed his muffin, hoping that it would help him ignore the bitter taste that always lingered in his mouth whenever he breached the topic of his family. "It’s just my mom. It’s one thing that she forgets about me but her own parents? She has so much to be grateful to them for and yet she never calls, never visits, never even sends an ounce of money to help them from wherever she is."

 

"Father?" Baekhyun asked softly.

 

"Never met him," he shrugged and pronouncing those words now didn’t hurt as much as it used to when he was younger. "I guess I was the product of a single night spent with him or something like that, my mother never liked talking about it. She never liked to be reminded of it either, that’s probably why she just dumped me to my grandparents as soon as she could and rarely ever came to visit. They took care of me and raised me, that’s mainly why I think she should care for them more but well, if she calls her own son only twice a year at most, I can’t expect her to call her parents more than that."

 

"And do you know where she is now?" Baekhyun asked when Yixing was done speaking and shoved at least half of his muffin into his mouth to munch on it in frustration. Maybe he hadn’t really grown out of this anger, at least.

 

"Last I heard, she was in Japan but that was a year ago, I don’t know now," he shrugged, replying only once he was done munching on the rather delicious muffin. "I just really hope she’s happy wherever she is."

 

That was still what mattered, after all. If she was happy wherever she was, Yixing had no right to bother her. His grandparents were happy too and even if he couldn’t visit them as often as he’d like to, he still called them at least once every two days to make sure they were well and healthy. They had always been enough for Yixing, in a sense, and now, he did his best to be enough for them too.

 

"You don’t really need her to be happy though," Baekhyun said after a few silent seconds. "I mean, we all need our parents, alright. But it doesn’t mean we’re going to be completely unhappy without them. It’s good to patch things up as you said, but it you’re the only to work for it, it’ll only make you even more unhappy. That isn't what you need at all, right now."

 

And it was a bit odd, the way Baekhyun could go from bright yellow happiness to faded black acceptance, and then turn into a completely light blue calm. It was a bit odd, but a bit captivating as well and maybe Baekhyun had simply mixed his own colors and decided to dress himself only in yellow because he had no time to waste on darker shades when this one was the one he liked the best.

 

Maybe he could teach Yixing to choose between his shades properly as well. He was already doing it, with his soothing voice, his slightly furrowed eyebrows, and the sure glint in his eyes, as if he was trying to convince Yixing that he should never let anything come above his own well-being. 

 

Maybe he was doing a good job at putting that idea into Yixing’s head, at least.

 

"And what do I need?" Yixing eventually asked, smiling a bit.

 

Bright yellow shined right into his eyes again when Baekhyun grinned back at him, streaks of mischief staining his eyes and the corners of his lips, splashed around like small dropplets of paint.

 

"Ice cream," was the only thing he said and Yixing quirked an eyebrow incredulously before realizing that the other was serious. "Come on, time to go get desert," Baekhyun added, smiling amusedly as he stood up without wasting any time and gathered the rests of their midnight meal into the tray again.

 

"I thought muffins were our desert," Yixing said even as he stood up to help the other.

 

"That was the first part of our desert."

 

"But I’m too full already, I don’t have room for ice cream," Yixing chuckled because even if Baekhyun said odd and misplaced things sometimes, it still sounded right and funny to Yixing’s ears.

 

"We’ll walk around to digest properly first, don’t worry," Baekhyun said, grabbing the plate and moving to dump its contents into the trashcan without saying anything else.

 

This time, Yixing was the one to wait for Baekhyun by the door that he held open for him so they could leave together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As it turned out to be, Baekhyun had really not lied when he said that they would walk to digest their huge midnight meal because for the next hour, Yixing once again found himself dragged around but this time, they were on foot as they traveled through the streets of this crowded part of town. Shops lined the streets on each side even if most of them were closed at this hour of the night, food stands wafting off delicious scents that no doubt came from the most delicious food you could find in this kind of little stands. 

 

It was crowded because the city never slept and especially not at night, on the contrary, it shined brighter than even the sky, chasing the stars away to shine on their stead and attracting both young and older people to the streets. It was nice to walk around at night but it was nicer in a part of town that was crowded with people, Yixing supposed, it allowed you to see so many different things such as street performers, food stands, and all kinds of other things, as if this was an eternal festival. There was even a few street vendors with stalls decorated with handmade jewelry about to pack everything up and leave the streets to casual performers and club-goers. 

 

There was a lot of pretty things to see and Baekhyun was amazed by everything they laid their eyes upon, as if he was a child exploring the world for the first when Yixing knew that Baekhyun probably had seen and lived much more than he had. It didn’t matter though because he wanted to show Yixing a lot of things and somehow, he managed to make the street vendors linger around for a few more minutes by looking at their jewelry and making small conversation with them, asking about their day to make sure that they wouldn’t be upset at them for looking but not buying anything they sold. 

 

That helped Yixing come to the conclusion that the yellow paint in Baekhyun indeed was easy to stain everything it touched because everyone Baekhyun talked to had a wide smile on their lips by the time he was waving them goodbye and pulling Yixing to their next destination. The latter was perfectly aware that he had a wide grin on his lips the whole time as well and he wondered if the yellow happiness painted by Baekhyun all over him would last longer if he spent more time with the other.

 

Baekhyun didn’t seem to have a farewell planned for any time soon, however. On the contrary, he seemed to be determined to actually drag Yixing around everywhere, making him watch a small group of street performers dancing on the most recent popular songs. After the performance was done, Yixing had pulled him to the small show an old man was offering by blowing bubbles and that had been one of the most interesting to watch. Or maybe Baekhyun’s expression had been the most interesting thing to watch when a small bubble had floated towards him only to pop as soon as it came in contact with the tip of his nose. He had blinked in surprise before adorably scrunching his nose when soapy water full of probably a few products had lingered on his face and unconsciously, Yixing had wiped it off his nose and cheeks with the hem of his shirt while laughing.

 

Baekhyun had simply smiled at him before finally dragging him to the nearest ice cream shop, the only one in the neighborhood that was open until 1AM and that they had caught only minutes before its closing time. Unsurprisingly, Baekhyun had taken unusual flavors, a combination of melon and coconut that he kept telling was the best thing he had ever tasted while Yixing remained unconvinced and preferred sticking to his strawberry vanilla flavored cone. They found a bench to sit on nearby and Baekhyun kept the conversation going as they both tried eating their ice cream as fast possible before it melted since it was nighttime but it didn’t mean the air was cold enough to keep the ice cream frozen for too long.

 

"Are you cold?" Yixing asked after a while between small bites of his ice cream.

 

Baekhyun couldn’t seem to bite into the cold texture, he was only licking it and somehow, that was oddly fitting and once again, unsurprising. 

 

"I’m eating ice cream, hyung," was the other’s only reply.

 

"That doesn’t mean you can’t get cold. You were cold earlier," he shrugged, frowning a bit when melted ice cream trickled down his fingers before cleaning it with a swipe of his tongue. That was why he hated eating coned ice cream, it was much better when he could use a spoon and a cup. "I can lend you my jacket again if you’re cold, I’ve been holding it in my hand for most of the night anyway."

 

"The point of eating ice cream is to get cold from it. Or at least refreshed," the younger replied, lips curled into that amused smile that made him look even younger than he actually was and full of the mischief reflected in his eyes. "You don’t have to take care of me just because you’re older."

 

"I’m not taking care of you," Yixing denied immediately, frowning a bit.

 

"Yes, you are," the other singsonged absentmindedly as he licked his ice cream.

 

"I’m not," Yixing repeated.

 

"You are," Baekhyun insisted and this time Yixing simply huffed softly because he had a feeling Baekhyun would keep this going until he gave up. "You’ve been taking care of me all night."

 

Yixing thought that it was the contrary, Baekhyun had been taking care of him better than anyone else had ever done it all night but he chose not to say it.

 

"How so?" he asked absentmindedly, frowning at the pinkish ice cream trail that trickled down the back of his hand this time. 

 

"You lent me your jacket when I told you I was cold. You handed me a napkin when I had sauce all over my fingers. You wiped my face when that bubble popped against my nose earlier, and you even held my ice cream for me because you didn’t trust me not to drop it until we reached this bench," the other listed, his smile growing with every sentence the same way Yixing bit onto his lip the more he realized that Baekhyun was right.

 

"That’s because you’re a kid," he simply huffed, melted ice cream forgotten when Baekhyun quirked an eyebrow only to slide closer to him on the bench, erasing the distance that Yixing had carefully put between them when he had plopped down on it.

 

The elder instantly slid away, not even sure why he did that since they had already been much closer than that earlier but somehow, something in Baekhyun’s gaze had changed, the red of his cap almost seeming to be darkening into a much more sensual shade and dripping into his eyes as he leaned closer to Yixing.

 

"You know very well that I’m not actually a kid, don’t you?" he asked and it was odd because his voice was much lower than it had been all night and Yixing hadn’t expected to hear such a tone.

 

He also didn’t expect Baekhyun to lean forward and down until he could swipe his tongue over the back of Yixing’s hand, collecting the pinkish trail of melted ice cream there and leaving a bright red trail of tingles on his skin instead. His gaze had never left Yixing’s as he looked up at him from under his eyelashes, his hooded eyes so different now, no trace of youthful mischief or amusement left. Something in his stomach churned and he had been eating ice cream but Yixing felt something warm pooling there instead.

 

As soon as he actually realized what had just happened, Yixing’s eyes widened and he spluttered for a second, forming incoherent words in embarrassment. He recognized this feeling. It had been years since he had last felt it but it didn’t mean he had forgotten it. The heat, the need, the want, and the embarrassment of how Baekhyun had managed to make him feel all of it in the span of little more than a second. Baekhyun who was much younger than him, dressed in a bright yellow shirt, licking his ice cream because he hated biting into it. Baekhyun who made him feel so alive and happy.

 

He instantly tried pulling away but he was already on the edge of the bench which caused him to lose his balance, his eyes widening as he tried telling himself that it would be okay to fall on his butt and humiliate himself because Baekhyun would probably at least laugh at him and he liked that sound. However, nothing of that sort happened because Baekhyun was fast enough to grab a hold of his arm and pull him away from the edge of the bench. He was still laughing, however, and Yixing wondered if he had really turned into an old awkward man who didn’t know how to act in front of a person of interest after years of drought in that emotional area.

 

"Looks like I'm the one who’s gonna have to take care of you actually," Baekhyun said teasingly as he let go of Yixing and _thank god_ , slid a bit away from him. "Or we could mutually take care of each other too. That would be perfect, I think."

 

That sounded nice. Too nice. Yixing wasn’t used to someone saying they would take care of him. Baekhyun had said it so easily, as if it was no big deal, as if it would be an easy thing to do. It was too nice and when Yixing felt yellow bubbles flying around in his chest, tickling his heart and sending shivers down his spine, his breath hitched at the realization that _it sounded so nice._ More than it should.

 

"I have a boyfriend," he suddenly blurted out, reiterating the lie he had used at the very beginning of the night when Baekhyun’s presence had felt too nice too.

 

It was a bit ridiculous and Yixing almost cursed himself, a grown man lying to a much younger man because things felt too nice and he wasn’t used to it. Baekhyun didn’t seem offended by the second rejection of the night, however. On the contrary, his quirked eyebrows and smile seemed to indicate that he was merely amused by it all.

 

"Right," he said, drawing his word out. "That boyfriend who supposedly called you often to check up on you, right?" he asked and Yixing felt a small wave of panic hitting him when his words sounded nothing remotely close to convinced. Had he seen through it? "He never called you though, it’s almost like he doesn’t exist or forgot that you exist. Must be a shitty boyfriend. I suggest you get a new one, hyung."

 

Yixing wasn’t sure whether the other was actually suggesting him to get a new boyfriend or if he had seen through his lie and was merely mocking him. It was a bit difficult to figure Baekhyun out entirely but maybe Yixing just didn’t want to look into it that much, not wanting to complicate things and simply choosing to keep this ridiculous way of protecting himself.

 

Though, he wasn’t sure why he felt the need to protect himself. What harm could Baekhyun do to him? He was just an adorable stranger who made Yixing’s night brighter than it had ever been, shining into it with his bright yellow shirt and his bright smile and his bright red cap and his blond hair.

 

"Why blond?" Yixing asked instead of replying to the other’s last words, hoping to change the subject.

 

"I just thought it would suit me," Baekhyun shrugged, effortlessly letting go of the whole boyfriend subject. "And it’s bright. I like bright and colorful things."

 

"You suit bright and colorful things," Yixing said without an ounce of hesitation, surprising himself but drawing a smile on Baekhyun’s lips. "Even if it makes you look like a kid."

 

"Very funny, old man," Baekhyun snorted. "I’m planning to dye my hair another color soon though."

 

"What color?"

 

"I’m not sure. It could be red, or purple. Maybe pink. I might even go for blue," Baekhyun laughed and he was talking about it as if he was merely struggling to choose what the color of the shirt he would be wearing tomorrow should be.

 

Yixing couldn’t help but laugh at that, feeling as light as the laughter that bubbled out of his mouth only to get lost in the thin air separating him from Baekhyun.

 

"Why don’t you just dye your hair all those colors at once? It would be funny," he jokingly suggested.

 

"It might actually be really funny if the mere thought makes you laugh hard enough for your dimple to appear," Baekhyun mumbled as if he was lost in his thoughts, gaze lingering somewhere around Yixing’s cheek. "It’s cute."

 

This time, yellow wasn’t what seeped into him when Baekhyun met his eyes again while muttering those last words. Red warmth was what seemed to drip onto Yixing’s chest instead, flowing from Baekhyun’s gentle gaze and staining Yixing’s soul for a few seconds. He hadn’t felt this kind of warmth in a long time, not the furious kind of warmth, not wild flames devouring your mind either but gentle warm and colored waters shrouding you from the cold.

 

The kind of warmth even ice cream wouldn’t take away. The kind of warmth Yixing thought only Baekhyun had ever made him feel.

 

"Thank you," he whispered, not out of shyness but because his chest was too warm and he liked the feeling enough to speak slowly, unwilling to scare it away.

 

Baekhyun simply smiled at him, yellow, red, and a whole other color Yixing wasn’t able to distinguish.

 

Then, he stood up, his hand grabbing Yixing’s to pull him along.

 

"Come on, we’ll finish our ice cream on the way to your car."

 

"Where are we going this time?" Yixing chuckled softly as he followed along, warmth seeping into him through the younger’s fingers.

 

Baekhyun simply smiled at him, crescent shaped eyes filled with mischief and his playful smile decorated by a tiny mole right above his upper lip.

 

"An adventure’s only fun if you don’t know your destination."

 

And he was right. It didn’t matter that much because wherever Baekhyun was bringing him to, Yixing knew it would only fuel the newly ignited flame of life fluttering in his chest in hues of red, yellow, and warm orange.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yixing hadn’t really figured where they were going until he was parked in front of an apartment building and Baekhyun had told him to turn the engine off and following him upstairs. The last destination he had in mind had been Baekhyun’s _house_ and even if he was - ridiculously - panicking at the thought of letting Baekhyun take him home, he still hadn’t found it in himself to put an end to everything and simply drive away to forget this encounter with a stranger at the bar.

 

What harm could this do anyway? He considered himself familiar enough with Baekhyun not to call him a stranger anymore and even if the younger had the tendency to drag him to places, he hadn’t done a single thing to harm him through the whole night. He might have almost given Yixing a stroke a few time by being overly open about his not-so-innocent intentions but it hadn’t been anything upsetting. On the contrary, Yixing liked the attention the other was giving him even if he still kept boundaries between them, never crossing the line too much or forcing Yixing into something he didn’t want.

 

Moreover, they had spent the whole night outside and Yixing did need a moment of peace between four walls, where he would be alone. Being alone with Baekhyun sounded better than being on his own anyway now that he trusted him.

 

"It’s a bit messy, I hope you don’t mind," the younger said as he unlocked the front door and slowly pushed it open, motioning Yixing to step in first.

 

"I don’t mind but I can’t promise I won’t go all adult on you and clean things up," he simply said with a small shrug as he took in his surroundings.

 

He toed his shoes off, carefully lining them against the wall with the rest of what could only be Baekhyun’s shoes, a few pairs of colorful sneakers, some of them more worn out than others.

 

"Oh, but you can go all adult on me whenever you want, hyung," came Baekhyun’s playful yet low and alluring voice from behind him and Yixing gave him a look over his shoulder, hoping that the other wouldn’t notice the way those words somehow sounded appealing. Too appealing.

 

He simply remained silent and walked further into the house. It wasn’t that big, it was actually rather small but maybe that was an impression given by the way the living room did look messy. There was a couch shoved against the wall, just big enough to fit two or three people at most, a small coffee table in front of it and a television pushed against the wall across from it. There wasn’t much decorations but a lot of clothes were strewn around along with magazines or empty take out boxes, and books were dripping from the small library right under the window, some of them laying on the floor. A wide cream-colored fluffy carpet was covering almost the entirety of the living room floor and the only window in the room was unsurprisingly decorated by yellow curtains. It was colorful, every piece of furniture was mismatched, the sofa a deep velvety blue, the coffee table brown, and the television supported by a small dark green piece of furniture made of even more shelves that were filled with what looked like albums and small figurines. 

 

However, the most colorful part of it all was the clothes strewn around, a bright red shirt on the floor, a blue and yellow one draped over the couch, and cartoon characters covering all the socks Yixing spotted around the room. In a way, it all oddly came together to form a perfect picture and Yixing found it fitting for Baekhyun who was as colorful as the home he lived in.

 

"It’s not that bad," he said at last, glancing at the door opening to a hallway that probably led to the other rooms such as the bedroom or the bathroom. There had been another closed door on the other side of the entrance hall and Yixing supposed that that one led to the kitchen.

 

"I’m just too lazy to clean around as often as I should," Baekhyun said as he grabbed every piece of clothing around and simply dumped them on the floor, next to the couch. Yixing couldn’t help but smile at the sight. It was oddly fitting too. "Do you want to drink something?"

 

"No, thanks. If I get one more thing into my stomach, I’ll probably explode," he explained, smiling in apology.

 

Baekhyun didn't seem to mind, however, he simply nodded in understanding and grinned.

 

"Perfect then, we can get down to business."

 

"What business?" Yixing instantly asked, taking a step away from the other and eyeing him suspiciously as surprise and panic filled him up instantly.

 

What business? What was he talking about? What were they gonna do? Had he brought Yixing here with a particular purpose? Yixing wasn’t ready. Baekhyun was so young and he was so much older and the other was attractive for sure but he was so young and this would probably not mean the same thing for the both of them. Not that it had a particular meaning for Yixing, it was just that the elder hadn’t had anything close to intimate contact with anyone for three whole years, yet alone a one night stand. 

 

His panicked streak of thoughts was interrupted when Baekhyun suddenly burst into laughter and he froze, clueless as to what the other found so funny. And a bit ticked off. Baekhyun always laughed at him.

 

"Don’t look so panicked, hyung. I’m not gonna jump on you," the other said after calming down and Yixing frowned.

 

"You’re the one who words things weirdly. You probably did it on purpose, you brat," he mumbled, a it embarrassed by his own exaggerated reaction.

 

"You know me so well already," the other simply smirked before motioning him to follow. "We’re not going to do anything weird, you’re just going to dye my hair."

 

"I’m going to dye your hair," Yixing repeated, not even fully surprised by yet another odd idea of the other’s as he followed Baekhyun out of the door he had spotted earlier.

 

It indeed led into a bathroom that was surprisingly much cleaner than the living room had been.

 

"Yep, you said you wanted me to dye my hair rainbow so we’ll make it happen," Baekhyun shrugged as he moved towards the closet and opened it to reveal what looked like several boxes of hair dye.

 

Yixing simply stood there, surprised.

 

"You’re going to dye your hair just because I said it would be nice… and funny?" he asked just to make sure because this seemed too much even for Baekhyun.

 

However, the other simply looked at him over his shoulder, his pinkish lips curled into a gentle smile that looked as soothing as it felt to look into a row of cherry blossom trees.

 

"Why not? I’ll dye my hair in crazy colors if it means that cute dimple will appear every time you look at me," the younger said, so casually, as if it didn’t mean much when Yixing felt his heart coming to life in his chest, awakening from what felt like a century-long slumber and dancing around in joy as soon as he heard those words.

 

Yixing thought that his dimple probably already peeked at Baekhyun every time he laid his gaze on him because Baekhyun made him smile harder than anyone else ever had but he couldn’t say it. It felt too intimate and the younger had already looked away from him by the time he managed to get a grip of himself back anyway.

 

"Why do you even have so many colors to begin with?" he asked instead, eyeing Baekhyun as he pulled out boxes and boxes of hair dye, colors ranging from orange to blue.

 

"I like to be ready for when crazy ideas suddenly pop into my head," was the only explanation Baekhyun gave him before he started preparing things.

 

It was obvious that he was used to dying his hair on his own in the way he prepared everything needed, pouring the hair dye into small bowls made for that use, getting a roll of foil from the drawer under the sink, and handing Yixing transparent gloves.

 

"I’ve never dyed anyone’s hair," the elder said, finding it to be a crucial information because he didn’t trust himself not to end up somehow burning Baekhyun’s hair and turning him bald.

 

"Then it’s gonna be even more interesting," Baekhyun simply replied, however, before turning to him. "You can sit on the edge of the bathtub and I’ll just drop on my knees in front of you."

 

"Can’t you word things in a more appropriate way?!" Yixing spluttered.

 

"Where’s the fun in that?" Baekhyun laughed.

 

Yixing spent the next few minutes grumbling about rude kids who didn’t know how to speak properly only to shut up when Baekhyun told him that maybe he was just the one too old to take it, causing them to bicker a little bit while Baekhyun got everything else ready.

 

It didn’t end up too difficult in the end, the only real challenge was not spilling any of the several bowls full of hair dye on the floor and making sure to use each color evenly while trying not to let Baekhyun’s endless talking break his focus. The latter kept telling him that it wasn’t that serious and that if he messed, he’d simply have to pay for an appointment with a real hairdresser but Yixing took it very seriously and didn’t want to disappoint the other.

 

He learned a little more about Baekhyun while dying his hair since they asked each other questions to while the time away. He was surprised to find out that Baekhyun was a full-time worker in a musical instruments store that gave small children guitar or piano lessons at the same time, that he actually didn’t really like to hang out in clubs as much as he liked bars because it was too noisy for real conversations, and that he had a brother who was the complete opposite of him. What hadn’t been surprising, however, was that he was a picky eater and that the mere smell of cucumber made him sick.

 

He also gave the other a little more information about himself, his favorite food, his favorite music genres, and a few stories about his grandparents that always made Baekhyun laugh. It also seemed to make the other a bit sad, however, because his grandparents had died when he was ten years old and he missed them a lot. Somehow, Yixing found himself promising the other to bring him to his hometown to visit his grandparents one day and the smile Baekhyun gave him in return was brighter and more colorful than his hair would probably end up being once they’d be done dyeing it. However, Yixing didn’t have the occasion to admire the other’s smile because he accidentally dropped a big lump of hair dye on Baekhyun’s neck when the latter turned to smile at him and he shrieked in panic, trying to wipe it away while Baekhyun laughed heartily, not making things easier for him.

 

Silence fell over them after some time, however, when they were done dyeing Baekhyun’s hair and the only thing left to do was to wait for half an hour for it to be ready and Yixing was reminded that it was probably close to three in the morning when his eyelids felt a little heavier than usual. Fortunately, they were done waiting before he could fall asleep on Baekhyun though and that seemed to entirely take the sleepiness away from the latter because he instantly shot up on his two feet, almost spilling the remnants of hair dye on the floor as he shoved Yixing out of the bathroom while telling him that he would wash his hair on his own and that the result should be a surprise for him.

 

The elder easily obeyed, walking back into the living room and simply dropping on the couch, body too tired and heavy for him to wait for Baekhyun to wash his hair while standing around. He closed his eyes for a few seconds as he waited, a smile lingering on his lips as he thought back on everything he had done tonight. It indeed had been past 3AM when he had glanced at his phone before dropping on the couch and it had been a long time since Yixing had last stayed up so late without doing it in order to stare at figures and numbers and everything he hated equally as much in his life.

 

It felt nice to be staying up while doing unusual things that he had appreciated doing more than he had appreciated anything in what felt like and probably was years. Baekhyun had made him do things he had never thought he would do even if getting ice cream after midnight or dyeing someone’s hair shouldn’t be that big of a deal. It was for him.

 

It was a big deal for Yixing who hadn’t smiled so much in such a long time that his cheeks and jaw were hurting now. It was important for Yixing to feel so warm and alive and _colorful_ as he sat down in a living room that wasn’t dark and lonely like his own house was but lively and messy and bright like its owner was instead. It was important because Baekhyun had called him a zombie in the first conversation they had exchanged and he had dragged Yixing out of that bar with the promise that he would make him feel alive again when usually, people didn’t care. They never cared about nothing but themselves and for Yixing who cared about everything but himself, it felt nice for someone to want to care for him. 

 

It was important for someone to make him feel emotions he hadn’t felt in such a long time, even if it had been a bit scary at the beginning of the night. Now, Yixing knew for sure that it wasn’t scary anymore, not when Baekhyun wore yellow shirts and colorful caps. Not when Baekhyun had dyed his hair in crazy colors just because he wanted to see Yixing smile. Not when Yixing felt so alive and warm.

 

"Alright, close your eyes and only open them when I tell you to."

 

Baekhyun’s voice disturbed him from his thoughts and he realized that what he had planned to be a few seconds had turned into a few minutes and his eyes were still closed, the smile on his lips wider. Baekhyun was treating this like it was such a big deal, like a surprise that Yixing hadn’t created himself.

 

"They’re closed," he said, oddly feeling a sudden wave of expectation flow through him as he heard the soft pitter-patter of Baekhyun’s bare feet stepping into the living room and closer to him.

 

"You can look now," he heard after a few seconds and only then did he open his eyes.

 

As soon as he did so, he was hit by a burst of color that looked more lively than anything else Yixing had ever seen before. It wasn’t as bright as he had feared it would be, some colors were almost pastel on Baekhyun’s hair but that didn’t change the fact that he was proudly wearing the colors of a rainbow on his head, his bright red cap traded for something even more colorful that he couldn’t really take off his head whenever he felt like it.

 

His once blond hair was now much more colorful, blue, pink, and purple tones dominating the whole hairstyle but still leaving room for a few strands of faded orange and yellow mixing in with the few blond strands they had decided to leave, and a darker shade of blue that looked like a forest green somehow coming all together to form a burst of color that Yixing oddly felt attracted to enough for it to pull him on his feet and bring him closer to Baekhyun. The latter stood still, looking at Yixing with anticipation as the elder walked towards him, his eyes sparkling and shining but not as if they held stars in them. Baekhyun didn’t hold stars or diamonds in his eyes, Yixing realized, his beautiful orbs were like deep pools of water under a night sky but they weren’t dark. It was colorful. His eyes seemed to reflect the new colors of his hair.

 

Yixing came to find that Baekhyun wasn’t just bright yellow happiness even if that was currently the dominating shade in the sparkles of his eyes. There was also blue serenity, fierce red drops of courage, pink hues of gentleness, and a soft pale salmon color that could be nothing but tenderness and acceptance. There were so many different colors, in Baekhyun’s hair, in his eyes, in his home, probably even in every single part of his soul, and Yixing who had once thought that Baekhyun was a bright and delightful yellow could now see that he had been wrong. Baekhyun wasn’t just a single, unchanging shade, he was an entire palette of colors that were both dark and light, bright and dimmed, fierce or shy, each of them representing a different emotion but all of them coming together to swirl into a vibrant, unique color full of _life_ that Yixing knew he would never see anywhere else but in Baekhyun’s eyes.

 

"It’s beautiful," he said softly once he was standing in front of Baekhyun, forcing himself to drag his gaze away from Baekhyun’s eyes up to his hair instead. Then, he laughed, fully, heartily, the sound that bubbled out of his mouth full of life because this was such an odd hairstyle and yet, Baekhyun managed to suit it, still as beautiful and young as he had looked when wearing a bright red cap. "It suits you really well."

 

"That tiny dimple suits you very well too and I’m glad I got to see you smile so much tonight," Baekhyun replied and this time his voice was the color of sincerity, gentle and soft as he looked into Yixing’s eyes.

 

Yixing could only smile, offering the sight of his dimple to Baekhyun again because that came naturally to him and if Baekhyun was willing to dye his hair in rainbow colors just to make him smile, then he was willing to smile until his face hurt.

 

He couldn’t find anything to reply, however, because he had never been good with putting words on his feelings and the bright palette of color on Baekhyun’s hair was still too distracting. Instead, he slowly brought his hand up, Baekhyun silently observing him as his fingers dived into the bright colors of his hair, his long, fluffy strands soft to the touch thanks to the conditioner he had probably used after dyeing it. He spent a few seconds like that, simply ruffling and messing the other’s hair with his fingertips, letting them swim in the palette of color while hoping that some of it would stain his fingers and never come off.

 

Or maybe Yixing was already stained with Baekhyun’s colors.

 

Before he had the occasion to ponder on that thought, he felt Baekhyun’s hands grabbing his wrists before he suddenly found himself pulled down, down until his back met the floor a bit harshly but not painfully since the carpet was fluffy and soft enough to spare him some of the pain.

 

"What are you doing?" he asked with a soft chuckle, turning to look at Baekhyun who laid down next to him on the floor.

 

"We did our job and we’re tired," the other shrugged, smiling as if he was amused by the fact that even after he had basically thrown Yixing on the floor, the latter wasn’t upset with him. "It’s past 3AM already and I think we should sleep before we both turn into zombies."

 

Yixing simply laughed.

 

"There’s a couch behind us, you know," he reminded the other as if this wasn’t Baekhyun’s own house.

 

"Too far away," the other simply said.

 

Silence fell over them after that and the lights were still on, they probably wouldn’t actually sleep there, Yixing could take the couch and Baekhyun could take the bed, he wouldn’t mind. However, he had a feeling this was yet another adventure of Baekhyun’s so he stayed silent for a bit, staring at the ceiling and listening to Baekhyun’s steady breathing next to him.

 

"I’m not a zombie anymore, though," he said after a few minutes and much deliberation. He wasn’t good with expressing his emotions but he wanted to do it, for Baekhyun. "You brought me back to life."

 

"Did I?" Baekhyun replied, turning his head to look at Yixing and meet his gaze. Blond and blue and pink hair was dripping on his forehead, almost reaching his eyelashes. "Or did you just remember that you were allowed to focus on your own life and figured how to bring that sensation back again?" he continued, surprising Yixing a bit.

 

It made sense, what Baekhyun was saying. Yixing used to feel like this before, full of life, laughing with his friends, meeting them often, eating greasy food and forgetting to do his homework because he was too busy playing games and enjoying his life. That was before, though. Before he had grown up and forgotten how to feel alive after deciding that he should be done with being a child and turned into a miserable, responsible adult instead because that seemed like the safest thing to do.

 

"Still, you’re the one who reminded me," he said softly, because he didn’t want to discredit Baekhyun. Had he not talked to Yixing at the bar, the latter would probably already be in his own bed, staring at his dark ceiling and thinking about what-ifs and regrets. "You taught me how to do it again."

 

"You’re right, maybe I did that." Baekhyun smiled a bit, gentle and bright but also a bit dim. It wasn’t yellow around him anymore, it was a soft warm brown. It was a wise color filled with experience, like the body of a century-old tree. "But I won’t make you happy, hyung. No one can make you fully happy. People might give you a taste of joy for a while but it won’t be full happiness as long as you know part of it doesn’t come from you and you alone. People might give you a little bit of happiness but what about when you’re alone? Who’s gonna make you happy when you’re left on your own even for a few minutes? What will bring you happiness when you wake up alone and make yourself coffee or when you’re at work and you zone out for a few seconds? No one but yourself. That’s why you need to work on your own individual happiness or you’ll fear sadness when you’re left on your own. That’s the only way happiness will actually last."

 

It made sense. It still made sense. He knew Baekhyun was right and when he swallowed down the lump in his throat, Yixing’s chest felt tight and cold. Because Baekhyun was right. What was the use of being happy with someone by your side if you felt miserable when left on your own?

 

"It’s not that easy," he said, words tight and pained. It wasn’t easy. It would never be. Even if Baekhyun was right, it wasn’t easy to just go and be happy with your life, your work, your family, _yourself._

 

 _"_ I never said it was easy. It would be stupid to think that it should be easy," Baekhyun said softly, an understanding glint in his eyes shining alongside a gleam of determination. The determination of someone who knew it wasn’t easy but was brave enough to fight for their own happiness nonetheless. "But just because it isn’t easy, do you have to give up on actually living? Do you have to turn into a zombie going from work to home without doing anything you even remotely appreciate all day just because it’s difficult to be happy? You can," Baekhyun shrugged, sighing a little. "You can give up for a while if you want to but not forever. You have to fight for your own happiness, hyung. If you hate your job, you’re allowed to consider quitting it."

 

"It’s not easy to find a job, Baekhyun," Yixing sighed, now feeling exhaustion weighing down on him.

 

"I know," the other said. "It isn’t easy but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. You’re going to struggle a lot, maybe not too much if you’re lucky, but that’s okay because wouldn’t you rather live and struggle a bit instead of being safe but unhappy until the end of your life?" 

 

Yixing didn’t reply. He was right but it was difficult to break himself out of the habit of not complaining and being happy with what he had. Though, he had never really been happy with what he had.

 

"Same goes for your family," Baekhyun started again, more gently. "You’ve never told your mother what you actually felt, right?" he asked, continuing when Yixing shook his head. "Maybe you should. It might not change anything, life isn’t full of miracles and things will never be perfect but at least, you would’ve tried and whatever happens, it wouldn’t be because you refused to try. I know it’s hard, it’s always difficult but that should never stop you from trying and failing but trying again until you can actually tell yourself that you’re happy with what you have."

 

Yixing took a deep breath in as soon as Baekhyun was done talking, closing his eyes for a few seconds. It was easier to pull air into his lungs than it had been in years.

 

"You’re right," he eventually said, after a few minutes of silence he spent processing everything Baekhyun had said and thinking. "It might be difficult and I’ll probably fail a lot but… You’re right. Maybe I should try, if I don’t want to depend on you to feel alive," he chuckled softly, hit by a wave of courage but only half joking.

 

"Well, I’m still always here whenever you want to leave Zombie Land," Baekhyun said, playfully wiggling his eyebrows before laughing, so vibrant, so bright, so colorful and full of life.

 

And the only thing Yixing could think of doing at that moment was pull himself up and lean over the other until he could press his lips against that beautiful smile, the years separating them and Yixing’s fear forgotten. He supported himself on his forearm, Baekhyun still laying on his back as he easily moved his lips against Yixing’s, soft, gentle, and willing. Yixing’s eyes were closed but as he took Baekhyun’s plushy lower lip between his, pressing open mouthed kisses on it, there was a huge burst of color behind his closed eyelids, like fireworks or splashes of paint based on the unique palette of color that Baekhyun was.

 

It was nothing but a gentle kiss, maybe a bit sleepy and tired, slow but full of life and of the color that Yixing could now confidently say was definitely staining his soul. Their tongues barely came in contact, chasing each other but never fully meeting, their lips pressing together and biting tenderly without ever bruising or hurting, until Baekhyun laughed softly against his lips, Yixing’s fingers once again tangled in his rainbow hair.

 

He pulled away after a while, gently brushing the tip of his nose against Baekhyun’s, feeling incredibly happy that the younger hadn’t pushed him away or wanted to take things further away even if his intentions had been obvious since the very beginning of their night spent together. He was smiling when Yixing opened his eyes and looked at him and even if his arm was starting to hurt, he couldn’t find it in himself to pull away and lay back down, not when the burst of colors in Baekhyun’s eyes were even clearer from closer, happiness, relief, and tenderness vibrant in his dark but colorful eyes.

 

"Thank you," Yixing whispered, way older than Baekhyun but almost feeling like a little child in the other’s comforting embrace as soon as his arms wrapped around Yixing’s neck and pulled him even closer, almost on top of him.

 

He didn’t know what he was thanking him for, if it was for making him feel alive again, teaching him how to live again, kissing him, or spending the night with him and turning it into one of the bests in Yixing’s life, enough for the elder to wish he could spend every remaining night of his life with Baekhyun. Or maybe he was thanking him for staining his soul with a palette of color Yixing didn’t know he needed.

 

"Boyfriend?" was the only thing Baekhyun said, looking up at him with an amused smile, and Yixing froze.

 

He had forgotten about that lie.

 

"I don’t have one. I’m sorry," he quietly said, biting on his lower lip in worry and hoping Baekhyun wouldn’t be upset with him for lying about it since the beginning.

 

"You’ll have one if you reply yes to my question," the younger said, rainbow hair bright, yellow shirt bright, but smile even brighter.

 

It took Yixing a few seconds to process those words before he laughed softly and pulled away to properly lay on his back again, pulling Baekhyun closer to him until the younger rested his head on his shoulder, one arm and one leg thrown across Yixing’s body. He laughed softly. This was oddly fitting too.

 

"I’ll reply yes to your question someday," he then said, his answer drawing laughter out of Baekhyun’s mouth. He could almost see those notes of happiness dancing above them and splashing bright yellow paint around.

 

Someday, he’d reply yes. Just like someday, he’d be able to find his own true happiness, no matter how much he knew he would struggle along the way. 

 

However, for now, he simply nuzzled his nose against the palette of colors that was Baekhyun’s hair and breathed them all in, letting their vibrancy seep into his soul and settle there, soaking him in bright colors and rendering him as warm as Baekhyun’s tight embrace around him felt.


End file.
